The "Whatever" Wars
So, someone is trying to force you to make a choice? Do not. Do the "both or none" choice.
Let us see some examples from the digital world.
Normally, we all are born without digital gadgets and networks. We do NOT need them for a decent life. It is all an illusion, coercion by some lunatics. Still, many of us fall for this trick and take the bait. Sad, but true. Nevermind: read on, and I will show you how to navigate this apparently complicated landscape.
Examples where the industry, guided by wanton greed, is tricking you into making a choice, when actually you do not need to make a choice:
Mac or PC? Tablet or smartphone? Desktop or laptop? etc.
Instead of spending time and energy taking this bait, either a) choose none, or b) choose all. If money is finite and you must make a choice, go for the simplest solution, which is usually the most powerful for you, choose that one. In this example: a) choose none, thus forego the entire eco-system of digital goodies. Do not have a mobile phone, do not have computers. Yes, believe it or not: you can live a good life without all of them. Or b), if money is not an issue, buy a Mac AND a PC, buy a tablet AND a smartphone, buy a desktop AND a laptop, etc. Then you do not need to make a choice: just use all of them, and if one particular item proves to be useless for your "usage scenario", just get rid of them (sell them). Or, if you cannot afford to have them all: choose one of the many and stick with it. In this particular list you will probably get the most bang for your buck with a desktop PC, if you have a home where it can fit.
What Operating System to install?
In some cases the hardware comes with an operating system pre-installed. It may sound like a good deal, but in fact it is not. Pre-installed software of ANY KIND is a limiting factor, and in each and every case it is limiting your freedom, plus dragging you into some eco-system which is good for them, not you. So, with some rare exceptions, you are usually free to choose whatever operating system to install on your hardware. If so, choose Linux. Which flavor of Linux is not so important, although Linux Mint or Ubuntu Cinnamon are two of the best choices today (2025). They are fast, reliable, supported, familiar, and rich in features. For the curious or demanding power users I recommend SereneOS (Japanese Fedora Linux), PuppyLinux (the ultimate powerful nano Linux) and Porteux (genius pendrive Linux for ad-hoc use), these are special and good, but there are tons of Linux distros you can choose from. If you still need other operating sytems, such as Windows or MacOS, you can still add them later as "apps" (Windows 2022 Server or Sosumi in a VirtualBox session under Linux). With the latter, you do the "all of them" option. Alas, here the "none of them" option does not work for obvious reasons: you cannot use a hardware without an operating system.
What software to use on your chosen hardware?
If you chose Linux, then you just search for anything in the Software center. If using Windows, PortableApps is a good start. If using a Mac, then install homebrew, search for software on the net, and install it with homebrew. By the way, whatever your "first" operating system, you can always emulate the others with VirtualBox, so install that first.
Okay, so what browser to use to browse the web?
Let's face it: you will probably use your computer online, so your first software to install will be a browser. Again, the "whatever war" guys out there will try to convince you that you must make a choice: either this, or that. Wrong. You can use multiple browsers at the same time, and you should. Practically today there are two families of "engines", the Chrome-family and the Mozilla-family lines. There are others, but ignore them for now. From the Chrome-family your best choices are Brave (most privacy-respecting) and Opera (most intuitively useful user interface) or Vivaldi (full of features for demanding users). From the Mozilla-family your best choices are Firefox and Floorp (basically the same as Firefox but with more options from Japan). For experts there is Seamonkey, which is the oldest Internet Suite, with all its goodies. For the curious I can recommend the Sleipnir4 browser from Japan which works on all operating systems (the newer Sleipnir6 is fancy, but I think the older 4 version is better), or the excellent (albeit basic) Epiphany (also called "Web") browser for Linux. Some other honorable mentions: Supermium browser for Windows XP and newer OSs, and Thorium for the demanding users. There is also Palemoon, which is my personal favorite.
I could go on, digging into the details of Internet life even deeper, but for this post I think this much information is enough, perhaps even too much already.
The bottom line (literally) is that there are a seemingly infinite, confusing, tricky list of options to choose from, but you could navigate this jungle with the above advice and have a solid foundation to start with. If you keep the principle of "Keep it Short and Simple", you will not get lost in the Digital Jungle.
More fun advice to be expected later, for now this is it.
Enjoy, and thank me later...
Peace